Device for manufacturing shaped articles from fabric sections

ABSTRACT

A shaped article, such as a floor covering for a vehicle, is made from a plurality of interconnected sections of fabric having a pile and including a thermosetting or thermoplastic plastics material. During forming of the article on a two-part press, in order to prevent the pile from being flattened, the pile surface of the joined together and properly oriented sections is engaged by a gridlike press part only in the regions of the joints between the section. The press includes a trough-shaped receiving press part and a pivotally mounted top press part which is movable to engage over the article which is positioned in the trough-shaped part. The top press part is favored as a grid with projecting portions such as tubes which engage the article being formed at least at the junctures of sections or portions of the article which are to be arranged at an angle to one or more other portions. The tubes advantageously carry means for selectively cooling or heating the article to apply a desired thermal treatment for permanently forming the article.

United States Patent [151 3,63%29 Saladin 1451 Jan, M, 1972 541 DEVICEFOR MANUFACTURING 3,078,516 2/1963 Trammell, Jr. et al. ..1s/19 P SHAPEDARTICLES FROM FABRIC SECTIONS Primary Examiner-J. Spencer OverholserAssistant ExaminerR. I... Spicer, Jr.

[72] Inventor: Benno Saladin, Sirnach, Switzerland Attorney-McGlew andToren [73] Assignee: Saladin A.G., Switzerland [57] ABSTRACT [22] Filed:1969 A shaped article, such as a floor covering for a vehicle, is 21] LN 793,973 made from a plurality ofinterconnected sections of fabrichaving a pile and including a thermosetting or thermoplastic plasticsmaterial. During forming of the article on a two-part [30] ForelgApphcatmn Pnomy Dam press, in order to prevent the pile from beingflattened, the

APR 1 1963 Germany p 17 78 135') pile surface of the joined together andproperly oriented sections is engaged by a gridlike press part only inthe regions of 152 u.s.c1 ..425/173, 425/387, 425/409 the Jbims betweenthe The P includes a 51 1m. 01. ..B29c 17/04 Shaped receiving Pressllart and Pimtally toP Press 58 Field of Search ..1s 19 P, 19 F, 35,DIG. 60, part which is movable to g g over th article which is posi-IS/DIGI 41 DIG 59 tioned in the trough-shaped part. The top press partis favored as a grid with projecting portions such as tubes which engage56] References Cited the article being formed at least at the juncturesof sections or portions of the article which are to be arranged at anangle to I D STATES PATENTS one or more other portions. The tubesadvantageously carry means for selectively cooling or heating thearticle to apply a 2,11 1,638 3/1938 Weir ..l8/19 F X desired thermaltreatment for permanently forming the i 2,134,364 10/1938 Glougie..l8/l9 F 1 2,301,125 11/1942 Kramp et a1... ..18/l9FX 2,640,402 6/1953Comstock ..l8/l9 P X 7 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures 4 5 4 1/ 7 8 7 6 I? I]i It 1 l LL IL 1 L1 It 1 It IK L PATENTEU .12. 1 81972 SHEET 1 BF 4 HKTl IJI IL DEVICE FOR MANUFACTURING SHAPED ARTICLES FROM FABRIC SECTIONSSUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a method andapparatus for making a shaped article from sections and, in particular,to a new and useful press for the thermal and pressure treatment offabric having a pile and including thermoplastic or thermosettingplastics material to form it into a shaped article and to a method ofmaking the shaped article. Such fabrics are employed, for example, asfloor coverings of passenger carrying vehicles, more especially motorvehicles. As is known, the floors of motor vehicles, (and also ofaircraft cockpits of the like) are necessarily profiled, in the case ofmotor vehicles due to the presence of the transmission tunnel enclosingthe drive shaft to the rear wheels. Motor vehicle floors are thusdivided into troughs in which are received the feet of the occupants.

A profile corresponding to that of the floor must be given to the floorcovering, which in most cases consists of woven, knitted, or otherfabrics having a pile on the side facing the passenger of the vehicle.Such fioor coverings may have, moreover, thermoplastic and/orthermosetting plastics covering layers or may be reinforced by layers ofsuch plastics, or impregnated therewith. The underside of the floorcovering may be provided with such a layer to give the floor coveringnonslip properties after it has been laid.

The fonning of such profiled floor coverings, for instance in the formof carpets, has already been accomplished by means of hot pressing.Floor covering and carpet retain the threedimensional profile impartedto them in this way, but the pile is inadvertently subjected to anironing process during the hot pressing operation and is flattened andloses its normal characteristics. Moreover, it is not possible toobserve the product during manufacture. If the floor covering isinserted incorrectly into the press, then permanent creases are formedin the artificial resin layers and very often lead to the finishedproducts being rejected as substandard.

According to the present invention there is provided a method of makinga shaped article from fabric sections having a pile and including athermoplastic or thermosetting plastics material, wherein to shape thearticle, pressure is applied to the article solely in the regions of thejoints between the sections making up the article.

The invention also provides apparatus for making a shaped article fromsections of fabric having a pile and at least one layer consisting at.least partly of a thermoplastic or thermosetting plastics material, theapparatus comprising a first press part for engaging the underside ofthe article, and a second press part for engagement with the upper, pileside of the article, said second press part including a structure havinga gridlike form adapted to engage the article solely in the regions ofthe joints between the sections making up the article. The gridlikestructure may be made up from bars, webs or tubes.

With the aid of such a device it is possible to restrict the pressuresubstantially to and to concentrate it on, the joints between thesections. It is not necessary for the bars, webs or tubes which mayconstitute the gridlike structure of the second press part to have acircular cross section. If the cross section is, on the contrary ogival,ovoid or elliptical, for example, so that the member has a narrow edge,then the ironing down effect on the pile can be fully or almost fullyeliminated, or at any rate made inconspicuous. By a careful arrangementof the location of the joints, it is possible to make them unnoticeablein the finished article.

It is also possible to treat the joints thermally and/or chemically.This is readily possible because the gridlike structure may beconstituted by tubes including connections for heating or cooling mediaand/or chemically acting substances. Alternatively, the gridlikestructure may be made up from bars or webs including electrical heatingcoils or Peltier elements for cooling the bars. A brief heating of thebars, webs or tubes is sufficient to obtain the desired thermoplasticdeformation if the layer consists of thermoplastic plastics.Nevertheless, ironing down of the pile does not occur if a coolingprocedure carried out directly after the softening of the thermoplasticlayer is used to counteract the ironing effect, and the pile reassumesits alignment normal to the plane of the textile.

As a result of the gridlike form of the: first press part, the articlecan be constantly observed during the pressing operation, andadjustments to the position of the article can be made the instant theyare necessary.

Although in accordance with the invention, substantially only the jointsbetween the sections are subjected to pressure, it is also possible toapply pressure to the fabric over its entire surface, without harmingthe pile. Thiscan be achieved if, be fore, during and/or after theexertion of the mechanical pres sure, the sections joined together intothe finished article are exposed, by means of the inducement of suctionon the underside of the fabric, to the action of the ambient pressure onthe other side of the fabric. Since, through such a measure, the pile ofthe fabric is not pressed down relative to the fabric, the desireddeformation of the entire surface is obtained.

Specific embodiments of the invention will now be described by way ofexample with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. I is a side elevation of a press in the closed position,

FIG. 2 illustrates the press shown in FIG. I in the open posi- U011,

FIG. 3 shows a cross section through a floor covering prior todeformation,

FIG. 4 shows a cross section through the floor covering afterdeformation,

FIG. 5 is a front elevation of the open press shown in FIG. 2,

FIG. 6 represents diagrammatically in perspective a deformed floorcovering,

FIG. 7 shows a plan view of the press shown in FIG. I, viewed fromabove, and

FIG. 8 shows a second embodiment of press.

The press shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 5 and 7, comprises a rigid frameconsisting of uprights I reinforced by cross struts 2 and a topsupporting a plate 3. The plate: 3 carries upstanding brackets 4mounting a horizontal pivot or spindle 5 which serves for mounting twolaterally spaced two-armed levers each having a short arm 6 projectingbeyond the frame and a longer arm 7. The arms 7 together support amovable press part 8. The movable press part 8 is manually operable by ahandle 10, and supports a gridlike structure or framework consisting ofcrossbars II to 16 interconnected by longitudinally extending bars 17 to25. The configuration of the bars constituting the framework is moreclearly seen in FIG. 5. The bars 11 to 25 are so arranged that theycorrespond to the pattern of the joints between the various fabricsections or parts of the article which are arranged in a plane distinctfrom other parts. The article to be formed may be a floor covering for amotor vehicle, for example, which may be formed from a single sheet. Thepress also includes a stationary press part 9 which is supported by thetable 3 and is formed with a female mold cavity 26 corresponding inshape to the envelope of the underside of the framework 1 l to 25.

If the press is hand operated, tension springs 28 are provided to act onthe overhanging arms 6 and provide compensation for the weight of themoving press part. The other ends of the springs are fixed at 29 on theframe I of the press. A hook 30 for retaining the spring has ascrew-threaded shank 31 with a wing nut 32 threaded thereon so that thetension of the spring 28 can be adjusted. It is also possible to linkthe spring 28 with the arm 6 at different points such as 33, 34 so as tovary the moment acting on the two-armed levers.

FIG. 6 shows a floor covering in the form of a throughshaped carpet 35.The carpet is constituted from sections 36 to 43, joined along lines 44to 50. Some of these reference numerals also appear in FIGS. 3 and 4which show in cross section the carpet blank and the formal carpetbefore and after deformation, respectively. The pile is representeddiagrammatically at 51. The under or rear side 52 of the floor covering35 consisting of a woven or knitted fabric is impregnated with athermoplastic plastics material. The stiffening of the thermoplasticplastics material by thermal and/or pressure treatment permits thepermanent deformation of the woven or knitted fabric.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 8 corresponds to that of FIGS. 1, 2, and 7,with the difference that the stationary press part is not solid (as inthe case of the part 9 of FIG. 2), but is in the form of a hollow box51. Accordingly, the female mold is in the form of a shell 52A, whoserim is reinforced at 53 and is braced on the frame plate 3. The shell isperforated, as at 54. The interior of the box 51A communicates via aconnecting piece 55 with the suction side of the extractor fan 56 havingan outlet 57 to atmosphere. The suction fan 57 is driven by a motor 58.The fan 57 induces a suction in the box 51A, the suction acting via theperforations 54 on the floor covering 35 inserted into the mold. Owingto the suction acting on its underside, the floor covering 35 is therebypressed against the shell 52 of the mold by the ambient pressure. Thesuction fan 56, 57 can of course be replaced by any other suctioninducing apparatus, such as a vane-type or other pump, or to a commonvacuum line.

In operation, an undeformed or an already predeformed floor covering 35is deposited (with the press mold open in accordance with FIGS. 2, 5 and8) into the mold formed in the stationary press part. The press is thenclosed by lowering the upper press part. In so doing, the floor coveringhas been introduced into a state in which, as a result of suitableheating, it is thermoplastically deformable. Thereafter, the bars II to25 are cooled to a substantially lower temperature, e.g., by circulatinga coolant through channels defined therein, and are applied to thejoints 44 to 50 shown if FIG. 6, so that the thermoplastic regions areinstantaneously cooled down and thereby hardened. These hardened jointsthus impart the desired shaping to the floor covering 35, whereby therealization and maintenance thereof is fostered by the ensuing pressure.If the floor coverings have thermosetting plastics in the form ofenclosed layers or layers distributed by impregnation or spraying, thenthe solid bars or webs in the upper press part are replaced by tubes forconducting a heating medium, so that the therrnosetting plastics becomeset. The same effect can be achieved by heated bars or webs.

In the case of the embodiment of FIG. 8, after the insertion of thefloor covering 35 with plasticized thermoplastics content, the suctionfan 56 is operated so that the atmosphere on the one hand, and the bars11 to 25 on the other hand, cause a three-dimensional shaping of thecovering 35. If the bars are replaced by tubes, then the effect can befurther reinforced if the tubes are connected to a cooling mediumsupply. The cooling medium is fed via the hollow spindle 5 to the tubes11 to 25. Assuming the presence of thermosetting plastics layers in thefloor covering 35, superheated steam, for example, is fed via the hollowspindle 5 to the tubes 11 to 25.

The handle or spring 28 can, of course, be replaced by powered operationof a mechanical, pneumatic, hydraulic electromechanical orelectromagnetic type. For example, an electric motor can be arranged todrive a worm meshing with a worm wheel segment arranged concentricallyto the spindle 5 and rigidly connected to the lever arm 7. Upon currentsupply the motor raises or lowers the moving part of the press mold.Limit switches may be provided to stop the motor when the moving presspart reaches either of its end positions.

What is claimed is:

l. A multipart molding press for the manufacture of an article having aselected three-dimensional shape with the article being formed at leastin part of a shaping layer consisting of a synthetic resin material andanother layer consisting of a fabric, comprising separate press partsshaped to provide the article with its selected three-dimensional formand arranged to be pressed to ether to exert a pressing force directlyon the layers forming t e article, at least one of said press partsarranged to provide a base part on which the layers to be formed intothe article are placed, wherein the improvement comprises at least oneother of said press parts comprising a plurality of interconnectedrodlike members forming a latticeshaped press part with lattice openingsbetween said rodlike members through which the layer adjacent to saidlatticeshaped press part can be observed when said press parts are movedtogether, whereby any misalignment of the layer can be corrected, andsaid rodlike members being arranged to exert narrow bands of pressureapplication to the layers for joining the layers forming the articlealong the narrow bands.

2. A multipart molding press, as set forth in claim I, characterized inthat said rodlike members being formed of solid bars.

3. A multipart molding press, as set forth in claim I, characterized inthat said rodlike members being tubular in form with the passagestherein interconnected for circulating a liquid therethrough.

4. A multipart molding press, as set forth in claim 3, characterized inthat a hollow pivot member being arranged for pivotally mounting saidother one of said press parts so that said other one of said press partscan be pivotally displaced relative to the one of said press partsforming the base part, said tubular rodlike members being in fluidcommunication with said hollow pivot member for circulating a fluid fromsaid pivot member through said rodlike members.

5. A multipart molding press, as set forth in claim 1, characterized inthat the interconnected said rodlike members having a three-dimensionalshape arranged to mate with and correspond to the shape of said presspart forming the base part.

6. A multipart molding press, as set forth in claim I, characterized inthat the layers to be formed into the article being composed of amultiple number of individual layer parts each defining a differentcurved or flat plane surface of the article, and the other one of saidpress parts having its rodlike members disposed along at least thejoints between the different plane surfaces of the article formed by theindividual layer parts.

7. A multipart molding press, as set forth in claim 1, characterized inthat wall means in combination with the one of said press partsproviding the base part forming a closed chamber subjacently arranged tothe one of said press parts, the one of said press parts having aplurality of perforations therethrough communicating with the closedchamber, means connected to said closed chamber for establishing asuction therein acting through the perforations in the one of said pressparts on the layers placed on the one of said press parts.

1. A multipart molding press for the manufacture of an article having aselected three-dimensional shape with the article being formed at leastin part of a shaping layer consisting of a synthetic resin material andanother layer consisting of a fabric, comprising separate press partsshaped to provide the article with its selected three-dimensional formand arranged to be pressed together to exert a pressing force directlyon the layers forming the article, at least one of said press partsarranged to provide a base part on which the layers to be formed intothe article are placed, wherein the improvement comprises at least oneother of said press parts comprising a plurality of interconnectedrodlike members forming a lattice-shaped press part with latticeopenings between said rodlike members through which the layer adjacentto said lattice-shaped press part can be observed when said press partsare moved together, whereby any misalignment of the layer can becorrected, and said rodlike members being arranged to exert narrow bandsof pressure application to the layers for joining the layers forming thearticle along the narrow bands.
 2. A multipart molding press, as setforth in claim 1, characterized in that said rodlike members beingformed of solid bars.
 3. A multipart molding press, as set forth inclaim 1, characterized in that said rodlike members being tubular inform with the passages therein interconnected for circulating a liquidtherethrough.
 4. A multipart molding press, as set forth in claim 3,characterized in that a hollow pivot member being arranged for pivotallymounting said other one of said press parts so that said other one ofsaid press parts can be pivotally displaced relative to the one of saidpress parts forming the base part, said tubular rodlike members being influid communication with said hollow pivot member for circulating afluid from said pivot member through said rodlike members.
 5. Amultipart molding press, as set forth in claim 1, characterized in thatthe interconnected said rodlike members having a three-dimensional shapearranged to mate with and correspond to the shape of said press partforming the base part.
 6. A multipart moldIng press, as set forth inclaim 1, characterized in that the layers to be formed into the articlebeing composed of a multiple number of individual layer parts eachdefining a different curved or flat plane surface of the article, andthe other one of said press parts having its rodlike members disposedalong at least the joints between the different plane surfaces of thearticle formed by the individual layer parts.
 7. A multipart moldingpress, as set forth in claim 1, characterized in that wall means incombination with the one of said press parts providing the base partforming a closed chamber subjacently arranged to the one of said pressparts, the one of said press parts having a plurality of perforationstherethrough communicating with the closed chamber, means connected tosaid closed chamber for establishing a suction therein acting throughthe perforations in the one of said press parts on the layers placed onthe one of said press parts.